Brendan Opdyke and his mother Lea Opdyke, who live on Calvary Road (Route 136) near where the crash occurred said they heard what sounded like thunder and then their home lost power.

Brendan, who is home schooled, said they next hear an ambulance, followed by state troopers, BGE trucks and fire engines. Lea Opdyke said when she called BGE about the outage, they told her they were aware of it.

A photo taken by Brendan shows a utility pole broken near the top, with the crossbeams hanging. The van ended up at the entrance to a side street across Route 136 where the pole was broken.